


Quickening Concatenating

by Maple



Category: Highlander: The Series
Genre: Gen, Quickening
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-04-12
Updated: 2011-04-12
Packaged: 2017-10-18 00:11:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 494
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/182850
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Maple/pseuds/Maple
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Quickenings join individuals together end-to-end, and some things carry through more strongly than others.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Quickening Concatenating

Jay Kirkwood Ouflin, three hundred years, four months, and seventeen days old, had fought the good fight. He’d used every trick in his repertoire, and he was a proficient, sometimes brilliant fighter, but it was not enough. As he fell to his knees, with his opponent hovering above him, all his strength gone out of his body and wounds bleeding, barely starting to heal, he thought of his sweet wife. He closed his eyes, saying a prayer for her, and his last thought was of that sunny, golden morning he’d first met her. It had been at the flower show, and she’d given him a sunflower. The emotional rush—flirting, love, sweet attraction--came back to him with the memory. He’d reached his hand out for the sunflower, and thought that the girl’s honey-blonde hair was far more gorgeous a color than even the bright flower—

***

Lashel Loi took the Quickening of his opponent, a million images crashing into him, and he roared into the air, splitting his lungs. Finally the tumult was over, and he dragged himself to his feet, gathering back his strength. He straightened his clothing, still buzzing with the energy, his teeth on edge. He wanted to run, jump, scream. His body would be one hundred years old next week, and he’d taken over a dozen Quickenings, and still he had yet to learn to settle the energy. This one made his skin vibrate and he wanted to gnash his teeth together. Keeping himself together, he left the alley and the headless body behind. There was a convenience store at the corner. He ducked in there, bouncing on the balls of his feet, humming a tune he invented on the spur of the moment. Ah, he thought, sunflower seeds. I can crack them with my teeth and chew, keep myself under control. He bought the bag, the energies inside him jumping, and  
he walked slowly away. Crack, crack, crack went his teeth on the shells, and he felt somewhat better.

***

Duncan MacLeod, nearly four hundred and four years old, stumbled home through the dawning light of the morning. He’d been out for his morning run and some idiot Immortal had challenged him. His opponent had been too young and too stupid, and too green, and entirely set on fighting. Now Duncan buzzed with unsettled energy, and he thought of Tessa at home, sleeping in, not even knowing. Duncan cut across the park, planning on returning as quickly as possible, and as he did, the early morning farmers’ market caught his eye. There was a flower seller, he saw, and large bouquets to choose between. One bunch was a brilliant gold and brown: sunflowers in all their glory. He paused, reaching for some money, intent suddenly on buying the bunch to present to his own, true love. The flowers were gorgeous, almost too bright for the eye to bear…and yet, how they paled beside the flaxen-color of Tessa’s lovely locks.


End file.
